Runaway Part 3 : Homecoming
by egbkid
Summary: I'm homesick again, but it's good this time, because I'm going home. Finished
1. Prologue

Mom;  
  
I shouldn't tell you about this, but I have to. Dad, Logan, is alive. Bling and Cindy  
  
told me everything, about Manticore, about Eyes Only, everything, including what  
  
happened that day. They said you left before they found out he did not die. He was  
  
in a coma for almost eight months. Bling and Cindy tried to find you to tell you, they  
  
even hired an investigator, but they couldn't track you down. I haven't seen him yet,  
  
because he won't come out of his room and is afraid to let strangers near him. I will  
  
write you when I get more information.  
  
I love you and I miss you,  
  
Nicolas.  
  
~~ 


	2. one

"Mom? Mom!" I snapped out of my reverie to see my son Patrick standing in front of  
  
me, then I realized I was still at the end if the drive, beside the mailbox. Patrick  
  
must have just got home from the neighbors house.  
  
"What is that, Mom? Is it a letter from Nicolas?" I re-read it, hardly able to  
  
believe what it said. "Mom, are you alright?"  
  
I snapped out of it again, thinking quickly, "Patrick, baby, can you do me a favor? Go  
  
inside and find your new backpack, fill it with some clothes, two pairs of pants, five  
  
or six t-shirts, and a sweater, lots of socks and underwear..."  
  
"Moooom!!"  
  
"If you want to put some toys or books in it, you can, but not to much, don't make it  
  
to heavy. Then I want you to go to the kitchen, dig out the camping dishes, enough  
  
for you and me. I have to go see my boss; I'll be back very soon. Leave your  
  
backpack by the door, and see if you can find a box or something for the dishes, I'll  
  
bring some home if not."  
  
"Alright, anything else?"  
  
"Not for now, I'll be back in a few minutes."  
  
~~ 


	3. two

I drove to the service station and talked to my boss. Jake was a good guy, he knew  
  
I had had a rough past and I might have to pick up and leave at any time, but he still  
  
didn't want me to go. He said there would be a job for me if I ever came back, I  
  
thanked him and grabbed a couple of boxes, then headed up to Patrick's school.  
  
There, I was lucky to find someone, since it was still summer vacation. I couldn't get  
  
transfer papers right away, but I filled out a few forms to have his transcripts and  
  
stuff sent to Foggle Towers, then I headed back home. I wondered if I was making  
  
the right decision.  
  
~~ 


	4. three

I packed my own backpack, the same one that I traveled with all those years ago,  
  
and then went to the kitchen and packed as much food I knew I could cook on the  
  
road. I packed everything else in another box and I took Patrick over to the  
  
neighbors. We said goodbye to the best friends we had, I asked Sylvie to take care  
  
of my house and I gave her the box of food. Her children came over to watch us  
  
pack the car. I threw our clothes in the backseat, as well as the box of food and  
  
dishes. In the trunk, I stuffed some blankets and pillows and some of Nicolas'  
  
things. While Patrick was saying one last goodbye to his friends, I went around the  
  
house, turning off lights and taking one last look at the life I had made myself.  
  
Finally, I went into my bedroom and under my bed. There was a box I had built into  
  
the bed when I had made it. Every month, I had put some money in that box, in case  
  
something like this had happened. I divided it into hundreds, putting one in my  
  
wallet, and another in a hidden pocket in the same place. I put another hundred in  
  
my back pocket, and then divided the remaining into two envelopes. When I got  
  
back out to the car, I put one envelope in the bottom of the glove box and the  
  
other in a backpack I had made for Nicolas. The last thing I did before I left was  
  
take Logan's picture out of its frame and tape it to the dashboard of the car. We  
  
drove into the city, where I got the utilities paid and turned off, and then I  
  
stopped at a store and bought a metal box with a lock and two cheep silver chains.  
  
Finally, I stopped at the bank and closed our accounts. I got them to put the money  
  
in separate envelopes for each bank account, and wrote the kids' names on theirs.  
  
The money went into the box, which I locked. In the parking lot, I put the box  
  
under the spare tire in the trunk. I put the two keys that came with the box on the  
  
chains, hanging one around Patrick's neck and one around mine. I told him if anyone  
  
asked what it was for, to tell them he did not know, that he and his mother had  
  
always had them and that his father had a matching one to help them find him. I  
  
could see in his eyes that he was confused. After all, just a few hours ago, he was  
  
having fun at his friends house, now he was on the road with his mother, unsure  
  
whether he would see his friends or home ever again.  
  
"Where are we going, Mom? Was that letter from Nicolas?"  
  
"Yes, he told me something very important, now we have to make an emergency trip  
  
to Seattle to see him and my old friends."  
  
"Really? We're going to Seattle? Cool!"  
  
"You're alright with it? You know we won't be back on time for school to start."  
  
"It is alright, I don't mind."  
  
"When we get to Seattle, you will start school. I got your school to send your  
  
transfer papers to where Nicolas is staying. When we get there, I will enroll you in  
  
a school there. We might not need your transcripts, because of everything, but  
  
still, just in case, I had them sent."  
  
"How long is it going to take before we get there?"  
  
"About two weeks, it depends."  
  
"Are we going through America?"  
  
"No, we are going through Canada, it is easier to travel that way. As is, when we get  
  
to BC and we have to cross the border, we will have to get you a sector pass and  
  
stuff, I'll have to get mine updated, too."  
  
"What's a sector pass?"  
  
"Grab my bag from the backseat, and I'll show you." I showed him where I had left  
  
my sector pass in the front pocket with my passport. He dug it out.  
  
"But this says Max Goo...Gu..."  
  
"Guevera. When we moved to Bay-West, I had to change my name for safety. I took  
  
the name Kori off a fake passport made for me, and Cale was Logan's last name."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Wow, tell me more!"  
  
~~ 


	5. four

I kept talking about Seattle and my past until Patrick fell asleep. He loved the  
  
stories, and thought the same thing about Manticore that I did. I drove for six  
  
hours, and then decided to take a break. Patrick had been sleeping for almost three  
  
hours, so I decided to wake him up. We stopped at a convenience store and got out  
  
of the car, he ran a lap around the parking lot to stretch his legs, then we went into  
  
the store. I sent him into the washroom and waited for him to come out before I  
  
went into the ladies room. There, I did a quick stretch. My children did not know I  
  
was able to walk. No one in Bay-West knew I only used the wheelchair to feel closer  
  
to Logan. We bought a couple of hotdogs to snack on, and continued on our way. It  
  
was getting late, so Patrick fell asleep again almost right away, he always slept on  
  
long car rides, anyway. And he slept like a log, so after driving another hour, I got  
  
out and walked around the car three times. It was quiet in the car driving and  
  
listening to Patrick's soft snoring. My mind started to wander, and I thought about  
  
Logan. He was alive, all these years. But Nicolas said he wouldn't come out of his  
  
room, that he was a recluse. Someone must be staying with him, and I figured it  
  
must be Bling. He was the only person I knew besides me that could match Logan's  
  
stubbornness and temper. But not even he could move Logan once he set his mind to  
  
something. I even had a hard time doing that. In that way, Nicolas was like him. If  
  
either one of them wanted something, they would go after it no matter what was in  
  
their way, or whom. I knew I had a lot of work ahead of me if Nicolas was right. I  
  
was starting to get homesick again, but now it was a good thing, because I was going  
  
home.  
  
~~ 


	6. five

I had been driving a total of twelve hours and we were just coming up on the border  
  
of Quebec and Ontario. It was almost six o clock in the morning at home; I wasn't  
  
really sure what time it was where we were. I couldn't get a radio station to come in  
  
clearly on the old radio, so I had no way of finding out the real time. It was to  
  
quiet, and I didn't want to wake Patrick this early in the morning, so I stopped again  
  
to see if I could find a CD. I checked my backpack and realized I had forgot to  
  
pack some. To late now. I felt a little guilty digging through Patrick's backpack, and  
  
I was sure if he did pack any music it would not be something I liked, but at the  
  
moment I didn't really care, it was noise. There were none in the main pouch, but I  
  
did notice he had packed everything I had told him to. I took a look in the front  
  
pocket and found one disk. It has a plain label, in fact it looked like he had taken a  
  
piece of loose-leaf paper and cut it to fit. The case itself looked old, it was all  
  
scratched, and when I opened it, the front fell off because one of the hinge parts  
  
was broken. It was a plain silver disk with a white patch for writing on, something  
  
had been written on it with a pen at one time, but even my focused sight couldn't  
  
make out more than an S and a V. I slipped it into the CD player and right away I  
  
remembered what it was. It was Logan's, what had he said the sad song  
  
was...Sibilus! That didn't really matter now, though, how had Patrick gotten hold  
  
of that disk? It looked old enough to be the one he had played that day, could it  
  
have been left in the car? Patrick must have found it somewhere. It must have been  
  
there a long time before he found it. I let the music flow around me, remembering  
  
Logan and the night I first heard the piece. The night we first kissed, the night I  
  
had to leave him behind and go to ground with my brother Zack. I ended up going  
  
back to Logan and Seattle when I found out he was having an operation, I ended up  
  
giving him blood and being captured by Lydecker. Zack turned himself in before  
  
Lydecker got to me. I remember that day as if it were yesterday. The pain in Zack's  
  
eyes as they dragged him into the vehicles. I had been caught because I had fallen  
  
asleep after giving Logan blood. I dreamed that we danced to this music. I think I  
  
shared the dream with Logan. That was the last time I heard the piece, Logan must  
  
have lost the CD in the car. Patrick stirred beside me, stretching and yawning, and I  
  
realized it had been almost an hour since I had put the disk on, the score had  
  
played over and over, pulling me into it and the memories. It was time for another  
  
break.  
  
~~ 


	7. six

I found a convenience store and pulled into the gas pumps. As I filled the car,  
  
Patrick ran around the lot. He loved to run, and had won awards at school for it.  
  
As I moved the car away from the pumps, he made his third lap, and then I called  
  
to him. Patrick dug our backpacks out of the car and we went in and got freshened  
  
up, then I bought breakfast. When we got back into the car, I remembered I had  
  
packed food and dishes for this trip, so why was I buying every meal?  
  
~~ 


	8. seven

I kept going, driving for six hours and resting for one or two, and continuing for six  
  
more, all the way across Canada. It took me twelve days to get to Vancouver, where  
  
I stopped for an entire day. We rested and looked around and I tried my best to  
  
prepare Patrick for what he would see in America. If it was as I remembered,  
  
America was the total opposite of Canada. I also told him that his brother would  
  
probably be different because of the time he spent in America, and the things he  
  
had seen. The day after we arrived in Vancouver, I drove down to the border and  
  
waited in line to apply for a sector pass for Patrick and to update mine. It didn't  
  
take as long as I thought it would, so soon we were in Washington State and on our  
  
way towards Seattle. There were subtle changes in the town that the border  
  
crossing was in, but I remembered this town. This was the town that I painted the  
  
car in; I dyed my hair here, and changed my name. This was the town that my  
  
journey really had begun in. As I kept driving through towns, skirting the cities as  
  
best I could, I could see a change on Patrick's face. He looked at the piles of trash  
  
and the old cars sitting idle on the side of the road. He saw the crumbling buildings,  
  
and most of all, the sector points situated every two miles. He saw how some of the  
  
sector cops were mean to me, and how I talked back to them without flinching. I  
  
explained to Patrick that it was because I was a teenager when they put up the  
  
sector points, I had gotten used to dealing with the police and their corrupt ways.  
  
Eventually, he and Nicolas would learn to deal with them, too. It was getting dark  
  
when we pulled into Seattle. Patrick was asleep again and we were almost out of gas.  
  
As we pulled up in front of Foggle Towers, I nudged Patrick awake. He looked up at  
  
the building, and I pointed out Logan's apartment. He could barely see it, but I  
  
could easily, I could also make out someone standing in the window. It was to tall to  
  
be Nicolas, and to thin to be either Bling or Logan. It couldn't see the person's face,  
  
but it looked female. A bolt a terror quickly went through my heart as she walked  
  
away from the window. I chased the feeling away and drove towards the back of  
  
the building and the parking garage. I hoped the attendant would remember me, or  
  
else be very nice. I was in luck, the man in the booth was the same man it had been  
  
all those years ago when I had driven away, he recognized me instantly, and let me  
  
in, gushing how nice it was to see me after all these years, and how I hadn't changed  
  
a bit. I remembered that Logan had three parking spots for his apartment, so I  
  
drove around until I found them. Two were taken. There was a small black car with a  
  
bicycle chained to it, and something covered in a sheet. I pulled into the third spot  
  
and turned off the car. We got out and stretched, and while Patrick walked around,  
  
I went closer to the thing in the second parking space; my heart beat because it  
  
knew what it was. I peaked under the sheet and let out a small gasp. Patrick heard  
  
me and came closer, so I told him to help me uncover it. My baby. It was my bike; I  
  
couldn't believe it was still here. It looked exactly like it did the day I parked it  
  
there. I remembered that day and a tear ran down my face. Patrick asked me what  
  
the matter was, and I told him that we were looking at my motorcycle. He was  
  
totally amazed, couldn't believe that his mother rode a motorcycle. As much as I  
  
wanted to take off into the darkened streets of Seattle, I pulled myself away and  
  
led Patrick towards the elevator.  
  
~~ 


	9. eight

I got Patrick to search my book bag for my wallet, and then I looked through it for  
  
the key card Logan had once gave me. I slid it in the slot and hit the pent house  
  
button.  
  
"Is this where Nicolas is?" Patrick asked me.  
  
"Yes. Are you nervous about seeing him again?"  
  
"It has been a long time."  
  
"Only a couple of months, don't worry, I'm sure he hasn't changed that much." From  
  
where he stood behind me, I could hear Patrick prodding the floor with his toe.  
  
"What's wrong, honey?" I turned to face him as the elevator stopped. The doors  
  
opened and I led him into the foyer, and then turned to him again.  
  
"I'm just nervous, that's all...don't worry about me, we're here, let's go!" He  
  
brushed past me to the door. I knew he was lying to me but I decided I could figure  
  
out what was wrong later. "It's locked." I heard him announce, I turned to him again.  
  
I grabbed my knap sack and dug in it, praying I had left them in the bag. In one of  
  
the side pockets, I found my lock picking kit exactly as I had left it. I then quickly  
  
and carefully picked the lock, much to my son's surprise. I pushed open the door to  
  
find my other son staring back at me.  
  
~~ 


	10. nine

I couldn't move. Nicolas looked so different! He had grown considerably, and he had  
  
also developed some muscles. He looked older, he would be fourteen in a month and  
  
a half, but he already looked it. He wore a plain black shirt and black jeans. On a  
  
string around his neck hung a sector pass; it grazed the floor from where he  
  
kneeled to tie his black sneakers. The most obvious difference was his hair; it was a  
  
bit shorter than before, and spiked. I could tell the green dye was fresh, done  
  
today or yesterday. He stood up to face us.  
  
"Mom..."  
  
"Cool hair, bro." Patrick said, breezing past me. He dropped our backpacks on the  
  
floor.  
  
"What are you doing here? I was about to go out and mail a letter to you." he picked  
  
up a black fake leather jacket and pulled an envelope from the pocket.  
  
"Well, now you can tell me everything that you wanted to."  
  
"Alright, come into the kitchen, are you hungry?"  
  
"Yes! Can I make something?" Patrick asked, Nicolas led the way to the kitchen and  
  
showed his brother where everything was, telling him to make enough for six, and  
  
then he sat down at the table across from me. Just before he started talking, I  
  
heard a door close and footsteps come from down the hall from where I  
  
remembered the bedrooms to be.  
  
"You back yet, Nicolas?" I heard a voice ask, I recognized it, but wasn't quite sure  
  
who it was.  
  
"Yes, we're in here." Dr. Carr walked into the kitchen and almost dropped at the  
  
sight of me. He put a hand on the wall to steady himself.  
  
"Max!" I noticed he shifted his gaze to meet Nicolas' for a split second. "When did  
  
you get here? It's so nice to see you again!" He leaned down to give me a quick hug,  
  
then stood and walked over to a cupboard that Nicolas hadn't pointed out to  
  
Patrick, who was standing by the stove staring at Sam.  
  
"Patrick, this is my friend Dr. Sam Carr, Sam this is my other son, Patrick."  
  
"It's nice to meet you, Patrick." He said, shaking his hand, he turned to the  
  
cupboard and opened it, putting a plastic bag with some bottles in it inside. Closing  
  
the door, he turned back to us, "I'd love to be able to stay and talk, but I have to  
  
get back to the hospital. Nicolas, will you tell Bling I put everything in here?"  
  
"Sure, no problem."  
  
"Thank you, I'll see myself out, because I'm sure you want to talk to your mom. Nice  
  
to see you again, Max." he left, and I turned to Nicolas. Patrick went over to the  
  
fridge as I opened my mouth to speak.  
  
"So, what was in your letter that you were going to mail?"  
  
"Basically the same stuff that was in the letter I sent last week, I was re writing  
  
because you didn't answer it, or the one before that."  
  
"We were on the road, sorry, and the one before, I didn't bother writing back, I  
  
just packed the car up and left."  
  
"It's alright. I kind of hoped you would come, but I didn't really expect you. And  
  
Bling told me not to tell you that Dad, Logan, was still alive in case you freaked out."  
  
"So Bling lives here with Logan?"  
  
"And Cindy. They take care of him, because he won't come out of his room, not even  
  
to eat. He won't let anyone in except Bling, Cindy and Dr. Carr."  
  
"What about you?"  
  
"I've been here almost a month, and I only went in to see him for the first time  
  
yesterday, with Cindy. He was afraid that I was going to shoot him, so I couldn't go  
  
in by myself, and he likes to throw things at Bling."  
  
"What?"  
  
"Uh, he doesn't like his physical therapy much."  
  
"He never did. I'm surprised Bling lets him have stuff to throw at him, if he's that  
  
way."  
  
"I guess he tried to take things, but he always found something new, so now he just  
  
ducks."  
  
"I want to see him."  
  
"Mom, you can't, he'll freak! He doesn't even know that Bling is out! There has to be  
  
someone here at all times, that's why I was going to mail the letter while Dr. Carr  
  
was here."  
  
"When is Bling going to be back?"  
  
"He should be here soon, and Cindy will be home from work in about half an hour."  
  
"But didn't I see her bike chained to a car down in the parking garage?"  
  
"She has two, and that's Bling's car, but he doesn't use it a whole lot. Gas costs  
  
more than twice the amount down here than it does at home!"  
  
"I know, but there's nothing we can do about it. I'm going to use the washroom."  
  
"You know where it is?"  
  
"Yes, I'll be right back."  
  
I went through the apartment, over to where the hallway was. There was a door on  
  
it that wasn't there before. I went through it and found the bathroom easily. When  
  
I came out, I looked across the hall at what I knew was Logan's bedroom. Nicolas  
  
said he didn't want to see anyone, was afraid of everything. I moved closer to the  
  
door, and put my hand on the knob. Would he be afraid of me? Would he even  
  
remember me? I pushed open the door and looked inside.  
  
~~ 


	11. ten

I didn't hear anything, so I went into the room. The first thing I saw was the  
  
exercise table, I also noticed a small hole in the wall above it. Wonder what he  
  
threw to cause that. I ventured further into the bedroom, like always, the room  
  
was immaculate. Logan couldn't stand to have a mess around him. The bathroom door  
  
was half open, but the closet was closed and had a weight set in front of it. On his  
  
nightstand were his laptop, a notebook, a glass of water and his glasses. His  
  
wheelchair sat beside his bed and he was in the bed, asleep. I moved closer to him,  
  
he looked so peaceful. He hadn't changed much, he had a lot of gray hair, and it was  
  
a little longer than he used to wear it, but not a lot, and it looked like he may have  
  
gained a little weight. I wanted to wake him up, but he looked so peaceful, I  
  
couldn't. My enhanced hearing picked up the sound of the elevator bell; Bling was  
  
back! I didn't know if he would feel the same way Nicolas had about me coming into  
  
Logan's room, so I decided not to let myself get caught. I turned around and left,  
  
tossing one more look at Logan as I closed the door.  
  
~~ 


	12. eleven

As I came out of the hall, I saw Bling heading towards the kitchen. He didn't see  
  
me. He went into the kitchen and I followed him, but stopped outside the kitchen  
  
when he stopped beside the table. I heard him speak.  
  
"Nicolas, I didn't know you planned on having a friend over."  
  
"Bling: Patrick, my brother."  
  
"Your brother? Patrick, how did you get here?"  
  
"Mom drove me."  
  
"Then your mom is...?" I went into the kitchen behind Bling, and saw Nicolas  
  
reading a book at the table. His eyes quickly lifted from the book to my face, then  
  
shifted back to the book. I barely saw them move, but Bling got the message and  
  
quickly turned, practically tripping over me. I moved backwards just in time.  
  
"Max!"  
  
"Hello, Bling. It's nice to see you again." I joined Nicolas at the table, trying to be  
  
casual, but it was tough. Patrick stood at the stove, staring at us. I nodded to him  
  
and he turned back to dinner. Nicolas got up and left, taking his book with him, and  
  
Bling sat in the vacated chair.  
  
"Well?" he asked, raising an eyebrow.  
  
"Well, what? We received a letter from Nicolas, and decided to come down for a  
  
visit."  
  
"Max, you didn't just 'come out for a visit'. It's been over ten years. Do you know  
  
how much has changed in that time? What has been going on?"  
  
"Believe me, Bling, if I had known, I would have been here. I would never have left."  
  
Patrick slammed a pot on the stove; I looked at him. He was staring at us, with a  
  
hurt look in his eyes.  
  
"Oh, Patrick, I didn't mean it that way. I don't know what I would do without you  
  
and Nicolas." He turned back to the stove, scraping something on a cutting board  
  
into a pot.  
  
"Dinner's almost ready." He mumbled. I sighed. I didn't know what was wrong with  
  
Nicolas, but he was being distant, and now Patrick was mad at me, too. Things were  
  
not looking good.  
  
~~ 


	13. twelve

"Where is she? I seen th' car, so where is she?"  
  
"Where is who?"  
  
"You know who I mean, Nicky-boy. Where's your mama, ma boo?"  
  
"In the kitchen, with Bling and Patrick."  
  
"C'mon then, whatever they cooked up fir dinner smells great."  
  
"Nah, I'm not really hungry..."  
  
"You're comin!"  
  
I looked up to see Cindy dragging Nicolas into the kitchen. The second she let go of  
  
his arm; he crossed both over his chest and leaned against the wall.  
  
"Set the table while I talk to your mama." He sighed, but I was amazed that he  
  
complied. I sat there speechless as she turned to me. "Oh, Maxie! I missed you so  
  
much, I'm glad you've finally come home to us!" She bent down and gave me a hug,  
  
tighter than any I had ever received. Until now, I hadn't realized how much I had  
  
missed Cindy. I didn't think it was possible for me to hug her tighter then she was  
  
hugging me, but I did. When we pulled apart, she stood up and smacked me in the  
  
shoulder.  
  
"Now what were you thinking, makin' us all sick wit' worry like that? Don't ya know  
  
what a telephone is? I otta lay th' smack down on your..."  
  
"Cindy! Calm down, all that matters is that Max, Nicolas and Patrick are with us, it  
  
doesn't matter how. Now, Patrick has made us a delicious smelling dinner, let's see if  
  
it tastes just as good."  
  
I could have hugged Bling. Although I knew Cindy was just being herself, and I did  
  
deserve a smack, I didn't really want her to bring it up in front of the kids. We had  
  
a quiet dinner, and while Nicolas and Patrick did dishes, Cindy took a plate to Logan.  
  
I sat in the living room with Bling. He told me about Logan. About how he was afraid  
  
that someone would break into the apartment and shoot him again. Some days, he  
  
wouldn't even get out of bed except to go to the washroom. And he said they fought  
  
daily about his physical therapy, with Logan usually winning. He told me he hoped  
  
that now that I was back, I could drill some sense into Logan's head. I could try, but  
  
he was extremely stubborn, and even I wasn't sure I could make him budge.  
  
~~ 


	14. thirteen

We decided to start slow. The next day I enrolled Patrick in Nicolas's school, and  
  
whenever Bling or Cindy went into Logan's room, they mentioned me. He would  
  
always change the subject, though. Bling told me he thought Logan was afraid that  
  
if he talked about me, it would reopen the wound from when he woke up and I was  
  
gone. I wanted to go in and see him again, but it might freak him out. When Nicolas  
  
first told me that, I didn't understand, but now I realized just how bad it was. A  
  
week later, they managed to have a small conversation with him about me. They let  
  
Nicolas go in and visit him after school every other day, but they didn't tell Logan  
  
whom he was. The second week, the conversations were longer, and on the fifteenth  
  
day, they told him the Nicolas was my son. He denied it at first, he asked who  
  
Nicolas's father was, and Nicolas told Logan the only father he ever knew was him.  
  
Logan didn't believe him, said they were all lying, and demanded everyone to leave  
  
him alone. Meanwhile, I was going crazy, wanting to go in and see him again, but I  
  
couldn't.  
  
~~ 


	15. fourteen

Day seventeen, Logan asked to see Nicolas again. After school, we let him go in  
  
alone, and he stayed in the room for over two hours. Then he came out and called  
  
Patrick into the room. Both boys stayed in there for another twenty minutes. When  
  
they came out, neither would talk about what happened. The same thing happened  
  
for the next two days, but Nicolas and Patrick didn't talk about what had happened  
  
when they were in Logan's bedroom.  
  
Day twenty, Patrick dug his camera out, and Nicolas took him to the store to get a  
  
film. They didn't go see Logan that day, but spent their evening taking pictures of  
  
the apartment, and of me when they thought I wasn't looking. The day after that,  
  
they finished off the film, they didn't go see Logan that day, either.  
  
Day twenty-two, they went to get the film developed after school. I was in the  
  
kitchen when they came in, Bling was out at the market and Cindy was at work. I  
  
heard my sons come into the apartment, and I hollered to let them where I was, but  
  
they didn't come into join me. I went through the apartment and found out that  
  
they had gone into Logan's room. I wanted to go in and join them, but I decided to  
  
leave well enough alone, for today. They came out when Cindy got home, but once  
  
again didn't discuss anything that had happened. It was starting to irritate me,  
  
especially since Cindy and Bling said Logan was being distant to them, and refused  
  
to talk about either me or Nicolas and Patrick.  
  
Day twenty-three, nothing happened. Nicolas and Patrick acted as though they had  
  
never been inside that room, and had no intentions of ever going in there. They still  
  
were acting distant towards me, though. It was a Saturday, so they spent it in the  
  
kitchen with Bling, baking.  
  
Day twenty-five, Nicolas and Patrick still hadn't gone into Logan's room, it's as if  
  
they had discussed everything that had needed to be discussing. Bling told me that  
  
Logan was a little more cheerful, though, and didn't resist as much when it came  
  
time to do his physical therapy. He hadn't thrown anything at Bling in over a week or  
  
more. But I still couldn't go in and see him.  
  
~~ 


	16. fifteen

That night after everyone went to bed, I was in the kitchen trying to read a book,  
  
and I was going crazy. I couldn't concentrate. I knew I had to get out and do  
  
something; I hadn't been out at night since I had arrived. I checked on my sons  
  
sleeping on the foldout couch in the living room, and then I grabbed my jacket and  
  
left the apartment. Instead of using the elevator that opened directly into the  
  
apartment, I opted to use the one that opened into a foyer, that way no one would  
  
hear the bell when it reached the top. When I got to the parking garage, I drooled  
  
over my bike for a few moments, but took the car. I drove around the city, not  
  
paying attention to where I was going, and I found myself at the Space Needle. I  
  
stepped out of the car, leaving my wheelchair behind. When I got to the top, I  
  
realized it had taken me twice as long to make the climb than it used to. I sat there  
  
and let the thoughts run wild in my head. Just as the sun was about to come up, I  
  
climbed down. As I slipped back into my wheelchair at Foggle Tower, I decided  
  
today I was going in to see Logan. No matter what they said.  
  
~~ 


	17. sixteen

I got back into the apartment and picked up my book again. Ten minutes later, Bling  
  
walked into the kitchen to start breakfast. I put down my book and helped him by  
  
making toast. The smell of bacon frying roused Cindy, Nicolas and Patrick. All three  
  
were sleepy-eyed, the boys still in their PJ's. After we ate, Cindy quickly brought a  
  
plate to Logan, and left for work. She was late and we both knew Normal was going  
  
to make a big deal of it. Nicolas and Patrick went to go get ready for school, they  
  
had to hurry or else they would be late, too. After helping Bling with the dishes, I  
  
noticed that my sons still hadn't come in to say they were leaving, so we went  
  
looking for them. We could hear them in Logan's room. Bling knocked on the door  
  
and they came out a few minutes later. I ended up driving them to school, it was a  
  
very quiet ride; no one spoke a word. When I was driving back to Foggle Towers,  
  
everything went blurry all of a sudden. I found a place to pull over and realized I  
  
was crying. I haven't cried since that day, all those years ago. I sat there and cried  
  
for almost ten minutes. I didn't even know what I was crying about. I just cried.  
  
~~ 


	18. seventeen

That afternoon, I was alone again. I went to the hall door, planning on visiting Logan.  
  
When I got to his bedroom door, I knocked. There was no answer so I went in. He  
  
was asleep again. I sat and watched him sleep. After a while, he started to stir,  
  
started mumbling. I moved closer to him, moved his wheel chair away from the bed  
  
and sat in it's place. I picked up his hand and squeezed it lightly, he calmed down. I  
  
continued to sit and watch him sleep, until I heard his watch beep from the  
  
nightstand, signaling the hour. Glancing at it, I realized I had been in the room for  
  
almost two hours, and everyone would be home soon. I replaced his wheelchair and  
  
left the room, closing the door behind me. Just as I came out of the hallway, I  
  
heard the elevator ding. The doors opened and Nicolas and Patrick came out, talking  
  
about their school day to each other, but not offering me any information. They  
  
were still angry with me for some reason that I could not understand. I just let it  
  
slide, hoping they would come around eventually. They sat in the kitchen and did  
  
their home work until Bling came home, then Patrick helped him with dinner. Cindy,  
  
as usual, got home just minutes before we were ready to sit down. I was thinking of  
  
going in to work with her next week, seeing if Normal would give me a job. It was a  
  
long shot, but better then sitting around in the apartment all day. We were all  
  
sitting at the table, bowls passing back and forth, everyone talking, when I noticed  
  
Nicolas looking over my shoulder, he had a huge grin on his face. Everyone stopped  
  
and looked behind me, grins appearing on their faces, too. I turned around to see  
  
what they were all looking at. Logan sat in the doorway looking at us.  
  
"May I join you?" he asked. ~~ 


	19. eighteen

I was shocked. By the looks on the kids' faces, I could tell that they had known  
  
about this. Patrick grabbed a plate, silverware and glass conveniently set beside him  
  
on the counter. He set it on the table in front of his own dishes, and then picked up  
  
his own and moved around the table beside me, Nicolas passing the chair around the  
  
end of the table and Cindy. He pointed to the spot across from me that he had just  
  
vacated, and Logan moved into it, helping himself to what was left in the bowls in  
  
the center of the table.  
  
"Let's eat."  
  
Everyone obeyed, he Nicolas and Patrick started talking about their day at school.  
  
Bling, Cindy and I were to shocked to talk. After dinner, we all went in to the living  
  
room while the boys did the dishes. Until they came in, it was extremely quiet, and  
  
then they talked non-stop until I decided it was time for them to go to bed. We  
  
went into the kitchen and sat making small talk for about ten minutes, then Cindy  
  
and Bling suddenly got up and made excuses to go to bed. Logan and I were alone.  
  
"Tea?" I asked, going over to the stove, I turned the kettle on and grabbed two  
  
mugs off the counter. One slipped out of my grasp, falling on the floor and  
  
breaking. I swore. Logan rushed over to me, while I got the broom. I swept the  
  
glass into a pile while Logan watched, and then dropped the dustpan on the floor. I  
  
tossed the broom Logan's way and slid onto the floor, a second later I heard the  
  
broom clatter, and saw Logan beside me. We had both reached for the dustpan at  
  
the same time, our hands grazed, and we quickly pulled them back. It seemed like  
  
forever sitting there on the floor, and then suddenly, we were kissing. Just as we  
  
broke apart, Logan's watch started beeping. He looked at it, pressing a button to  
  
turn the alarm off.  
  
"Look at the time. Midnight." He whispered. "Happy Anniversary, Max."  
  
I was stunned; I grabbed his wrist, looking at the date on the watch. He was right.  
  
"Fourteen years ago tonight, you broke into my apartment. I have loved you ever  
  
since." He pulled me into a hug; it turned into another kiss. Eventually, we pulled  
  
apart and, sitting leaning against the counter, we talked. When the kettle started  
  
to boil, I reached up and flicked the button on the front of the stove; nothing  
  
disturbed us for the rest of the night. I told him everything, from the day I left  
  
until these past few weeks. Then he told me everything that had happened to him.  
  
Just as the sun was starting to come up, we finished cleaning up our mess and  
  
started breakfast. We vowed never to separate again. And we plan on getting  
  
married at Christmas.  
  
~~  
  
The End  
  
~~  
  
Hope you enjoyed it, I'm sorry it took so long for the conclusion, I just got busy and  
  
a good case of writer's block. Finally at ten minutes to midnight, I came up with  
  
this. I hope you like it, and thanks for reading!  
  
~egbkid 


End file.
